Invitation to Psychology

Chapter 7 Thinking and Intelligence 261

Becoming More

Creative

Throughout this book, we have been empha-
sizing the importance of asking questions,
thinking of nonobvious explanations, and
examining assumptions and biases. These
critical thinking guidelines involve creativity
as much as they do reasoning.
Take a few moments to test your own
creativity by answering these items based
on the Remote Associates Test, a test of
the mental flexibility necessary for creativ-
ity. Your task is to come up with a
fourth word that is associated with
each item in a set of three words
(Mednick, 1962). For example, an
answer for the set news–clip–wall
is paper. Got the idea? Now try
these. (The answers are given at
the end of this chapter.)

1. piggy—green—lash


2. surprise—political—favor


3. mark—shelf—telephone


4. stick—maker—tennis


5. cream—cottage—cloth

Creative thinking requires you
to associate elements of a prob-
lem in new ways by finding unex-
pected connections among them,
as on the Remote Associates Test.
People who are uncreative rely on
convergent thinking, following a set
of steps that they think will converge on one
correct solution. Then, once they have solved
a problem, they tend to develop a mental set
and approach future problems the same way.
Creative people, in contrast, exercise diver-
gent thinking; instead of stubbornly sticking
to one tried-and-true path, they explore side
alleys and generate several possible solu-
tions. They come up with new hypotheses,
imagine other interpretations, and look for
unexpected connections.
For artists and novelists, of course, cre-
ativity is a job requirement, but it also takes
creativity to invent a tool, put together a rec-
ipe from leftovers, find ways to distribute un-
sold food to the needy, or decorate your room.
Creative people tend to have three central
characteristics (Helson, Roberts, & Agronick,
1995; McCrae, 1987; Schank, 1988):

Nonconformity. Creative individuals are not

overly concerned about what others think

of them. They are willing to risk ridicule by

proposing ideas that may initially appear

foolish or off the mark. Geneticist Barbara

McClintock’s research was ignored or belit-

tled by many for nearly 30 years. But she was

sure she could show how genes move around

Changes in Neurons and Synapses

In 1983, when McClintock won the Nobel

Prize, the judges called her work the second

greatest genetic discovery of our time, after

the discovery of the structure of DNA.

Curiosity. Creative people are open to new

experiences; they notice when reality contra-

dicts expectations, and they are curious about

the reason. Wilhelm Roentgen, a German

physicist, was studying cathode rays when he

noticed a strange glow on one of his screens.

Other people had seen the glow, but they

ignored it because it didn’t jibe with their

understanding of cathode rays. Roentgen

studied the glow, found it to be a new kind of

radiation, and thus discovered X-rays.

Persistence. After that imaginary light bulb

goes on over your head, you still have to

work hard to make the illumination last.

Or, as Thomas Edison, who invented the

real light bulb, reportedly put it, “Genius is

one percent inspiration and ninety-nine per-

cent perspiration.” No invention or work of

art springs forth full-blown from a person’s

head. There are many false starts and pain-

ful revisions along the way.

If you are thinking critically (and

creatively), you may wonder whether these

personal qualities are enough. Do you re-

call the Termites who were the most suc-

cessful? They were smart, but they also got

plenty of encouragement for their efforts.

Likewise, some individuals may be more

creative than others, but there are also cir-

cumstances in our work, school, and family

environments that foster creative

accomplishment:

Encouragement of intrinsic motivation.

Creativity flourishes when schools and

employers encourage intrinsic moti-

vation (a sense of accomplishment,

intellectual curiosity, the sheer love

of an activity) and not just extrinsic

rewards such as gold stars and money.

Opportunities to work and social-

ize with different kinds of people.

Creativity thrives when you work and

hang out with others who have dif-

ferent ideas, perspectives, and occu-

pational training, because they tend

to jolt you out of your familiar ways

of seeing problems.

Allowing solitude and the time and

space to daydream. Individual creativ-

ity can also require solitude—having

“lazy” time to daydream productively—and

the freedom to perform a task or solve

a problem independently. “Brainstorming”

sessions with others tend to produce more

storm than brain (Amabile, 1983; Amabile &

Khair, 2008).

Permission to take risks—and occasionally

fail. Finally, organizations encourage cre-

ativity when they let people take risks, give

them plenty of time to think about problems,

and welcome innovation.

In sum, if you hope to become more

creative, you can do two things. One is

to cultivate your own talents and qualities

of curiosity, intrinsic motivation, and self-

discipline. The other is to seek out the kinds

of situations that will permit you to express

your abilities and experiment with new ideas.

Taking Psychology With You

For artists, creativity is a job requirement. Using a special 3D

technique, a Chinese/Korean artist group created this amazing

work. The boy is real; the tiger isn’t.